Lavender has been cultivated in Hokkaido for more than a century now, and the best way to experience its harvest is by visiting the Farm Tomita which does not just provide acres of lavender fields, but also has a backdrop of the Tokachi Mountain....

While reservations are optional or not needed at all on most trains (local trains for example), some like the Narita Express (Tokyo to Narita Airport), Komachi trains along the Akita Shinkansen, Kagayaki trains along the Hokuriku Shinkansen, the Hayabusa and Hayate trains along the Tohoku/Hokkaido Shinkansen and Sunrise Seto/Izumo night trains require passengers to make seat reservations by presenting their passes at the JR ticket offices....